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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Emergency measures, tightening of conditions for possessing weapons

Belgrade, 5 May 2023

President of the Republic of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic said today that following the last night's tragedy in Mladenovac, when eight people were killed and 14 were wounded, measures will be taken as a matter of urgency, one of them being the tightening of the conditions for possession weapons.

In his address to the public, Vucic expressed his condolences to the families of the victims in Vladislav Ribnikar primary school and in Mladenovac, in his own name and on behalf of the government of Serbia, and said that we are united together in pain and sorrow.

This is a mass criminal attack, after the attack on our children, and then on anyone who happens to be in front of the Hunting Lodge in Mladenovac. This is an attack on our country and every citizen feels it, the President said and added that all great nations in similar situations managed to find reasonable solutions after tragedies.

He announced that several thousand new police officers will be hired in the next six months, so that one police officer will be present in every school in Serbia, and stated that this will increase security in schools and reduce peer violence.

There are 331 schools in Belgrade, and 331 police officers will be assigned to them, Vucic said and noted that €25 million will be needed for other measures, and that this money is provided.

According to him, last night’s attack in Mladenovac is a terrorist act in which the police units had the task of arresting and neutralising the terrorist.

He pointed out that in connection with the mass murder in Mladenovac, a decision was made to raise the level of intelligence and counter-intelligence protection of the entire country.

The President of Serbia said that the government of Serbia will pass a conclusion today ordering the Interior Ministry to prepare urgent amendments to the Law on Weapons, which would tighten the conditions for the possession of small arms and firearms.

All people who have weapons will undergo an inspection, after which no more than 30-40 thousand pieces will remain. We will carry out disarmament and double the penalties. Also, hunters will be subject to six-month and annual checks, which include medical and psychiatric analyses and tests for psychoactive substances, the President of Serbia said.

He also announced that the Interior Ministry will take measures to ensure a moratorium on the possession of weapons.

The Interior Ministry will be ordered to take all measures and for all persons who illegally possess weapons to surrender those weapons within a month, and the Ministry of Justice to tighten penalties for unauthorised possession of weapons, Vucic pointed out.